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Guest Interview: Claire Kinuthia says Give the world the best of you

Dr. Claire Kinuthia is the blogger behind theycallmedaktari.com; a nominee for BAKE Awards 2016 under the New Blog category(make sure you vote for her here). Passionate about medicine, she’s known what she wanted to do as early as the age of 7, when she would want to follow her doctor father on his night shifts. Below are her answers to questions that shed light on how she remains focused and productive during her days, and I hope you find them as inspiring as I did;

What’s your sleep routine like? At the moment it’s pretty consistent. 10:30pm bedtime with a 6am start. I try to get up consistently at 6 am to work out or read. Then I’ll be in my head thinking as I get ready for the day, mentally psyching myself and setting small goals to achieve on that given day. I take time to look my best too, the confidence from that goes a long way.Are you a night owl or early-riser? I’m naturally a night owl but working hard to train myself to wake up early and get things done before my typical work day.

What’s the best career decision you ever made? I think its happening right now for me. I’m at a career cross-roads that has had me reflecting a lot as I figure out the best way forward. It’s a little scary but mostly pretty exciting. I’m trying to make sure to give myself time to think things through but not too much to miss any exciting opportunities. My gut says to go with the unconventional. I’ll definitely let you know how it goes. 🙂How do you stay creative in your field? How do you sharpen the saw? Mostly by keeping up with the latest research and sharpening my surgical skills. I am very keen on getting more training to get my laparoscopy skills on point. Minimally invasive surgery is the way of the future for pelvic surgery and I’m excited to jump in and provide the best possible options/services to my patients.What does a day in your working life look like? During this phase where I’m trying to sharpen my surgical skills as well as attain my specialist recognition I’m working at 3 different facilities and under the guidance of several amazing mentors. It’s challenging and makes for an intensely busy work-week. However I’m learning so much and feeling confident in my own judgment and abilities as a Specialist. I’m also learning a lot about the business aspect of medical practice because even as we seek to provide the best health care to others, doctors still have to put food on the table and a roof over our heads. So business, clinical practice and surgical work has my plate pretty full these days.

How do you balance work and social life? I have prioritise A LOT. There is so much to get done work-wise but at the same time, life is not waiting for anyone. I’m lucky to have an amazing partner who is much better at scheduling our social commitments than I am. He helps me out and keeps me from missing appointments or letting others down. I totally love him for it!
I also made up my mind ages ago about what’s truly important to me socially so I don’t struggle to get involved in anything I don’t have much interest in. It works as an amazing filter that helps keep priorities and choices in check. If I can’t make time for it, or just have no interest in it, I politely turn it down with no hard feelings. I am after all only human. 🙂

What’s your best time-saving shortcut or life hack? YouTube tutorials. There’s literally tons of them for absolutely anything! I’ve become quite the handyman/hairdresser/knitting guru/mechanic thanks to youtube.What apps, software, or tools can’t you live without? I’m not overly tech-savvy so the answer here might be disappointingly basic. I love WordPress (self-hosting) for my blog, my social media and news apps and the fact that I can do absolutely everything on my phone.

What everyday thing are you better at than everyone else? Sleep in virtually any position, in any location. I’m the absolute queen of power-naps!How do you recharge? I run away. Haha! Ok, so maybe not literally. I take well deserved breaks and go away to beautiful, serene places for a few days to relax and regroup. There are so many amazing places in Kenya so I’m currently enjoying discovering them one by one. I’ve written about a few of these on my blog so check that out. 🙂 [header image was taken from such post]

What book are you currently reading?The Leopard by Jo Nesbo. What’s the best book you’ve ever read? I’m not sure that’s a fair question. There have been so many excellent books in my life! Off the top of my head though, I’d have to say Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Its one of those that just sneaks right into your soul.What’s the best advice you’ve ever received? “Do you, hun. Give the world the best of you. It’s your life to live and you only ever get one chance at it. No regrets.” (Sage advice from a dear friend.)